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Citation
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Carson J, Jost G, Meinero M, Stipdonk HL, Ward H. European Transport Safety Council. Brussels, Belgium: European Transport Safety Council, 2022. |
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Abstract
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The road safety of children has improved considerably over the past decade in almost all countries monitored by ETSC's Road Safety Performance Index (PIN) programme. And yet, 390 children were killed on the EU's roads in 2020 alone and more than 6000 have been killed over the last ten years. Child road deaths represented 2% of all road deaths in 2020.
Child road mortality (deaths per million child inhabitants) went down by 46% compared to 36% for all other age groups over the period 2010–20. A relatively steep reduction can be seen at the beginning of the decade during the economic recession that followed the financial crisis in 2008. Another steep reduction can be seen at the end of the decade when measures aimed at controlling the Covid-19 pandemic severely restricted people's movement, including children, who at times were not allowed to go to school.
Unfortunately, however, the available data do not give the full picture. It is difficult to get data on the modal split, the amount of walking and cycling undertaken by children and the trend over the last decade in relation to a more sedentary lifestyle, transport by individual motorised vehicle and less active mobility. This would help provide data on the numbers of deaths and injuries per km travelled or time spent. It is easy to achieve low numbers of child deaths when no one rides a bike or walks to school.
Children do not benefit from the same level of safety everywhere in Europe. The child road mortality rate in Romania is ten times higher than in Norway, Cyprus or Sweden. Where child road mortality is relatively low, road mortality for the rest of the population also tends to be relatively low and vice versa. Where child mortality is relatively low and mortality for the rest of the population is relatively high, it could be because children in those countries tend to be driven to school and activities rather than being allowed to travel there alone by bike or on foot.
In the EU, there were seven child road deaths per million child population on average over the last three years, compared to 53 road deaths per million for the rest of population.
On average in the EU, one in 15 child deaths after the first birthday results from a road collision. Child road deaths represent 6.5% of all child deaths, whereas all other road deaths are 0.4% of all other deaths. Hence, for children, road mortality is much higher than mortality for other causes, as compared with the ratio of road mortality and general mortality for other age groups. Five years ago, one in 13 child deaths occurred after a road collision in the EU. This shows that progress in reducing child road deaths is going faster than progress in reducing other child deaths.
Children aged 10–13 have higher road mortality than children aged 5–9. As part of normal child development, children aged 10–13 are more likely to move around unaccompanied by adults, in particular travelling to and from school. But, once they reach the age of 14 and progressively acquire access to motorcycles and cars, their road mortality starts to increase steeply.
In 2020 in the EU27, 94 child pedestrians were killed in a collision involving a car, accounting for 21% of all child road deaths. Child car occupants with no other vehicle involved accounted for 18% of child road deaths and child car occupants in a collision with another car for 17.5%. Child car occupants in collisions with lorries or heavy goods vehicles accounted for 10% of all child road deaths. Child cyclists represent 11% of all child road deaths, and child moped or motorcycle riders, 5%. The remaining deaths are following collisions where the main other participant in the collision has not been identified or is not part of the categories listed above. |